Repository:
University of California, Los Angeles. Library Special Collections.

Los Angeles, California 90095-1575

Abstract: R.M. Ballantyne (1825-1894) was a apprentice clerk with Hudson's Bay Company in Manitoba, Canada. He requested a wilderness
post, and was sent to posts along the north shore of the St. Lawrence (1846-47). His recollections were published in 1848
and titled
Hudson's Bay; or, every-day life in the wilds of North America. He wrote more than 90 books, many of them adventure stories. He was also a draftsman and water-colorist who exhibited at
the Royal Scottish Academy, and he illustrated many of his books. The collection consists of manuscripts, correspondence,
and a scrapbook with pictures of Ballantyne, clippings about him, and an article copied by Westley about Ballantyne.

Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright,
are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright
and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Ballantyne was born on April 24, 1825 in Edinburgh, Scotland; became apprentice clerk with Hudson's Bay Company in Manitoba,
Canada; requested a wilderness post, and was sent to posts along the north shore of the St. Lawrence, 1846-47; following his
return to Scotland in 1847, a woman who had enjoyed Ballantyne's letters to his mother offered to finance a private printing
of his recollections; this led to the publication in 1848 of
Hudson's Bay; or, every-day life in the wilds of North America; wrote more than 90 books, many of them adventure stories; he was also a draftsman and water-colorist who exhibited at the
Royal Scottish Academy, and he illustrated many of his books; publications include
Snowflakes and sunbeams; or, the young fur traders (1856) and
Ungava: a tale of Esquimaux-land (1858) and
An author's adventures, or personal reminiscences in bookmaking (1893); he died February 8, 1894 in Rome.

Scope and Content

Collection consists of manuscripts, five letters from Ballantyne to various persons, a letter by Ballantyne to the Reverend
J.C. Westley, and a scrapbook with pictures of Ballantyne, clippings about him, and an article copied by Westley about Ballantyne.
Manuscripts include
Dusty diamonds cut and polished: a tale of city-Arab life and adventure;
The garret and the garden: or, low life high up;
Hunted and harried: a tale of the Scottish Covenanters;
Post haste: a tale of Her Majesty's mails;
Under the waves: or, diving in deep waters; and
The walrus hunters: a romance of the realms of ice.

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.